Indie-rock tends to be fairly well-mannered: Even
when it succumbs to metallic influences (see: the whole Isis/Pelican
"instro-metal" axis), it tends to remains polite. Whither the bands inspired by
the beautiful ugliness of The Jesus Lizard, those uninterested in the "stoner"
or "metal" tags, but willing and able to get nasty? McLusky was one, but the
Welsh band flamed out before picking up much steam. Two years later, two-thirds
of the group have re-emerged, re-energized, as Future Of The Left, with
McLusky's ingratiating snottiness fully intact. Singer-guitarist Andrew Falkous
has a way with snarling words that ring both hilarious and scary ("Violence
solves everything," "Real men hunt in packs"), and he's refined it even further
with Curses,
an ingratiatingly ugly, fun blast of guitars and barks. "Plague Of Onces" feels
like audio whiplash; "Small Bones Small Bodies" creeps and chugs through the
sewer; and "The Contrarian" offers a surprisingly delicate finish, complete
with piano. Each moment is pleasantly unpleasant, as Curses hard-charges headfirst
into brute-rock without considering genre distinctions. It's bracing, exciting,
and refreshingly, nastily smart.